Kenyan scholar: Why is China different from the western colonists?

Kenyan scholar: Why is China different from the western colonists?

Shanghai Watch 2016-08-2915: 21:22 Read (29) Comments ()

Disclaimer: This article was written by the author who entered the Sohu public platform. In addition to Sohu's official account, the opinions only represent the author himself and do not represent Sohu's position. report

Speaking of Africa, people over 50 will think of Ma Ji and Tang Jiezhong's cross talk "Ode to Friendship", which was the only cross talk in the 1970s. Because of it, many people in China remembered a Swahili word-"Rafik".

Editor's Note: From August 7th to14th, the World Wide Web and China Institute of Foreign Affairs held the "China Internet Celebrities' Africa Tour". Ding Gang, a senior reporter of People's Daily, examined the development of Africa from a historical perspective, observed the change of China's role in Africa, and wrote four notes on his visit to Africa. This is the first rule.

Dar es Salaam Railway Station

Speaking of Africa, people over 50 will think of Ma Ji and Tang Jiezhong's cross talk "Ode to Friendship", which was the only cross talk in the 1970s. Because of it, many people in China remembered a Swahili word-"Rafik".

Rafik means "friend", and the comic dialogue Ode to Friendship tells a funny story about China workers building Tanzania-Zambia Railway and making friends with Africans. For decades, the elderly in China have always associated Africa with this railway.

"The World Wide Web? It was exactly 3 p.m. when China Internet celebrities went to Dar es Salaam Railway Station, the starting point of Tanzania-Zambia Railway. The square in front of the station is empty under the scorching sun. Seen from the outside, this is a typical railway station in China in 1970s.

In the shade in front of the gate, there are several staff members, and no one buys tickets in front of the ticket office. Ask the conductor, he said there are only two trains to Zambia every week, and there are no trains today. Now, tickets for suburban short-distance trains are on sale. In the waiting room on the second floor, 100 seats were vacant, and suddenly several birds flew over the ceiling of the hall.

There are only four or five passengers in the train carriage parked on the platform, and the windows and seats are worn out, like the green leather train in the sixties and seventies. Before long, several children in school uniforms got on the train. They live in the suburbs and go to school in the city for half an hour by train every day.

The head of the Chinese team of Tanzania-Zambia Railway told us that 1860 km Tanzania-Zambia Railway has been in trouble for various reasons. For example, poor management, insufficient traffic, road transport competition and poor ports, and so on. At present, China is ready to take over the transformation and management of this railway.

According to the local "Citizen" newspaper, at the first round meeting in May this year, China, Tanzania and Zambia agreed that China would invest technology and funds to revitalize the railway. The tripartite technical team is working together to refine the reform plan, including determining which sections need to be rebuilt according to the traffic volume, reducing the bloated railway bureau, clearing debts and amending relevant laws. The reform of such an old railway is very difficult, but it also means the escalation of China's aid to Africa.

Tanzania-Zambia Railway is the crystallization of China-Africa friendship. At that time, President Liu Shaoqi once said to Tanzanian President Nyerere: "China's assistance to Asian and African countries is not much, but we are sincere. Not to help you rely on us, but to help you stand on your own feet. " This has made Africans unforgettable.

A survey in March last year showed that among African countries, Tanzanian people had the highest evaluation of China, and China was the most influential country in Tanzania. This is related to China's efforts to build the Tanzania-Zambia Railway. Tanzanian Prime Minister Magjaly Wa made a speech during an inspection tour of Dongao Garment Factory, a Chinese-funded enterprise. He said that the Tanzania-Zambia Railway is undoubtedly the most precious legacy, symbolizing the great spirit of self-dedication and unity of the government of China and the people of China, and providing strong support for the complete political and economic liberation of Africa.

When I attended the China-Africa think tank and media forum in Kenya, I talked with two African scholars, who both mentioned the railway and the sincere friendship it embodied. Machari, American International University (USIU), Kenya? Professor Mooney said that although the railway is almost out of service now, it is fundamentally different from the railway built by the colonists. Today, Africans respect China because this country can lend a helping hand to Africans in their most difficult times.

Mooney said that African countries are more willing to accept investment from China because of its low price, timely delivery and respect for local people. Although the quality of some projects invested by Europe and Japan will be higher, they often have high prices and long working hours. Unlike Europeans, China people don't look down on Africans and give orders from their superiors. China people can listen carefully to the opinions of Africans, and they will negotiate with them to solve problems.

Africa needs railways, highways, ports and bridges ... However, in order to make these infrastructures really play a role in the African economy, it is necessary to manage and operate them continuously and effectively, and establish a foundation of self-reliance. In the process of aiding Africa for many years, China has been exploring ways to help African countries improve their "self-reliance" ability, and gradually realized that good management and operation are reliable guarantees for the implementation of aid. In recent years, China's investment in infrastructure projects in Africa has absorbed the experience and lessons of Tanzania-Zambia Railway and started to focus on management and operation.

At present, the railway built by China Road and Bridge Company connecting Nairobi and Mombasa, the largest port in East Africa, is an example. With a total length of 480 kilometers and a design capacity of 25 million tons, this railway is the first section of the planned railway network connecting seven countries in East Africa, adopting the first-class standard of China National Railway. This project adopts monorail, which is an internal combustion engine system. The designed passenger speed is 120km, and the freight speed is 80km. After the completion of the railway, China enterprises will have the right to operate for 10 years.

Another important feature of the Inner Mongolia Railway is that it is different from the previous "blood transfusion project". It will promote the development of manufacturing, port construction and economic development zones along the railway, and strive to establish a "hematopoietic mechanism" to guide Kenya's industrialization process.

Next to the Inner Mongolia Railway being built by China enterprises, there is an old railway parallel to it, which was the first East African railway built by British colonists at the end of 19. Today, the backward economic structure and shrinking industrialization process in East Africa are not unrelated to this railway.

1890, European powers met in Brussels, and the meeting particularly emphasized the need to build railways in Africa. At that time, the British made a calculation that the cost of transporting goods by caravan was 200 to 300 times higher than that by railway. The British understand that building a railway from the Great Lakes region to the coastal areas will greatly facilitate the development and management of Uganda. The problem is that Africans will definitely lose money by building and operating such a railway in Africa.

In the end, the British colonists decided to attract workers from India to build railways, attract more European immigrants, and change the demographic composition of the areas where the railways passed and connected. So, what did British colonists rely on to attract immigrants? Land. They urged the king of England to issue a decree. 1895, Britain declared the area from the coast to Naivasha Lake as a British protectorate in East Africa, and later renamed it Kenya. 1902, the colonial authorities declared that all the land belonged to the British king, who distributed the land to Europeans and South Africans who wanted to immigrate here, and forced Africans to grow crops needed by Britain. A large number of tribal people had to move out of their homes, and Africans who lost their land became tenants of white plantations and endured extremely cruel oppression.

The plundering of Africa by western colonialists began with the squeezing of land, and its consequences are still restricting the development of Africa today. The research shows that the dependent economy can neither cultivate entrepreneurs needed by capitalist development, nor create the consumer market and the working class engaged in manufacturing, which is one of the main reasons for Africa's backwardness.

When the Chinese came, changes began to appear.